The Practice of Repenting and Receiving

Tracie Tackett
Nov 1
8 min read

Happy November 1st! Oh, the beauty that is in creation! I love to watch God create beauty in the change of seasons! Yet, we enter fall with a mix of emotions.

You may be feeling the calendar start to fill up and the holiday frenzy in the air. I invite you to PAUSE. SLOW DOWN. BE. I invite you to maybe even put it on your calendar, the moments you will be intentional about being with God. Maybe this holiday season, you can make a list of ways you want to be present, things you want to let go of, so that you can make space for the things that really matter most to you. Maybe you want to show up differently this November and December. Maybe with more peace, joy, and love!

What is God inviting you to notice these next two months? Name those things and offer them to God in prayer.

I want to celebrate the launch of the Holy Pause Community and the fifteen women that decided to join the community! You might be wondering, What does this community do together? We meet once a month to pause, share stories, and create space to notice God at work in us and around us! This beautiful group of women have committed to six months of a deeper journey with God and growing in spiritual formation in community. I love how M. Robert Mulholland Jr. defines spiritual formation as "the process of being formed in the image of Christ for the sake of others" (from his book, Invitation to a Journey). We want to be formed more and more into the image of Christ for the sake of others!

I want to invite you to join the Holy Pause Facebook group! I will be moving all my posts to Facebook and closing all other social media. I will only be on Facebook to share Holy Pause updates and encouragements. I am logging off of most social media because I am noticing that I long to be more present with those around me. I will continue to write blog posts, and changes to the blog are coming in 2026! Please share the blog with those who might need some monthly invitations to pause, pray, and follow. Thank you for being a part of Holy Pause!

Have you made space this past month for the practice of AWE?

Here are some places I have paused to be in AWE of GOD!

Fall leaves. They remind me that change is necessary, and there is beauty in change if we look for it. I'm learning to be present in this season.

The gift of another day of life! Early morning walks with Jesus change me.

A sweet coffee shop in Missouri. I spent a few hours reading, slowing down, and enjoying.

In AWE of all God did at the Sacred Places Retreat! My husband, Mark, coming along was a joy!

The AWE and WONDER of such wise people God has put in my path. I pay attention when they share!

A thoughtful and sweet gift from someone very dear to me... a locally made pop tart! We enjoyed the deliciousness together. The AWE of someone thinking about you and giving you a little gift.

Every single year, I am in total AWE of the change of these burning bushes! God must have wanted us to remember the significance of a burning bush and His encounter with Moses.

In the last blog post, I shared that our next practice would be The Practice of Repentance and Receiving. A few months ago, our pastor preached on repentance. I must confess that I am not in a regular rhythm of reflecting on my sin and repenting. I know I'm supposed to be, but when I have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God, the last place I want to run is to God. Honestly, I want to run away from God.

BUT GOD... He actually shares in His Word that He has something good for us to receive when we come to Him in our sin, in our falling short, in our turning away from Him to follow our fleshly desires. He has his arms open wide to give us righteousness, grace, redemption, and the kingdom of God! The God of the Bible, the One True God, invites us to turn around in our sin and run to Him. He is waiting to give us something special, eternal, and life changing!

Read these verses a few times, slowly. Circle what you notice or are drawn to.

^"This righteousness is given through faith inJesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Romans 3:22-24 ESV

"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Matthew 3:2 ESV

Footnote "Or the kingdom of heaven has come near" (Bible Gateway)

What you are drawn to? Linger with Jesus there for a few minutes.

Going back to our Practice of AWE... Maybe it was hard for you to be drawn to awe this past month. At times, it was hard for me, too.

As I began to reflect on the practice of repenting and receiving, I began to notice the places I turn away from God, the places I sin... where I go my own path or turn from God's nudges. I can hold bitterness and resentment if a situation doesn't go my way. I can also withdraw and say things out of my own hurt and pain.

In studying God's character and those in the Bible who went their own path and ended up in messy places, there is one thing I consistently notice...

He came to them in their sin. Pause for a second. Don't skip over this truth — it is an AWE moment. He came to them in their sin. He was with them. He never left them. He invited them to turn around, repent, and walk His path with Him, one step at a time... and the 'kingdom would come near.' This invites me to PAUSE and be in AWE!

Repent... and receive the Kingdom of God?!

I know, I can't wrap my head around it either. We worship a God that paid the price for our sin by hanging on a cross. We worship a God that said if you repent — which means to turn, leave the sin behind, and move toward His path with Him — He actually has something for you to receive... the kingdom of God!

We worship a God that welcomes us when we turn around and come near to Him.

We worship a God that invites us to transformation... but He does the work and has already done the work. We worship a God that will take our sin and redeem it. He takes broken people and transforms us into something beautiful when we lay those things at the foot of His cross and look up. He isn't there, though. He overcame sin and death. When we turn around, we hear Him calling our name to come and follow Him. He forgives. He loves us in our mess when we feel so unloveable. That takes my breath away. That leaves me on my knees in HOLY AWE of our God, El Shaddai, the God who is enough! (We are not enough, We need Him. He is enough!) Maybe it is time we allow our sin to draw us to God instead of away from Him. It is the very part of us that He wants to transform and heal and become more like Him for the sake of others!

Here is our Holy Pause Practice for the month. You can print this off and use it as you spend time with God reflecting and growing. We practice Pausing, Praying, and Following. May this bless you as you journey with Christ. You can also do it with a friend or group.

Holy Pause… Pause to notice what is going on in and around you. Jesus is with you.

The Practice of Repentance and Receiving

Breathe in and breathe out a few times. Slowly. Notice that this is breath God gave you. It is a gift today. Imagine Jesus sitting with you. He is simply being with you. His presence is peace, love, and gentleness. He walked through your door today to be with you.

Take a minute to pause. Reflect on your last week. Have you been turning away from God? Be gentle with yourself. This is the place that the enemy launches shame. Shame can keep us stuck in our sin. God invites us out of our sin again and again and again.

Is there an area in your life where God is inviting you to repent and receive?

We can make things very complicated, and sometimes they are. Spend a few minutes reflecting on these three questions:

Is this an area of sin that you need to share with someone and invite them to walk with you?
Is this an area of sin you need to simply turn around and walk out of?
Is this an area of sin that requires you to ask for forgiveness from God and someone you have hurt?

Reflect once again on these verses. Spend some time allowing God's Word to transform you from the inside out. He is in the business of changing us and forming us to be more like Him!

"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Matthew 3:2 ESV

Footnote "Or the kingdom of heaven has come near" (Bible Gateway)

What do I need to receive from Him today when I practice repenting and turning around?

Pray… Invite the Lord into a conversation.

Spend a few minutes praying Psalm 139:23-24.

If you would like to listen to this in a song, check out "Search Me, Know Me" by Kathryn Scott: https://youtu.be/GxWX95tNFAU

You are leading me, LORD, to an everlasting path!

Follow… Help me go where you go.

Imagine Jesus on the path with you. He is inviting you... calling you by name, inviting you to turn around, come, and follow Him. Is it time to leave behind the sin and shame and embrace the abundant life He has given you? Is it time to receive what God has given you?

Where are you inviting me to follow you, LORD?

Follow where He is leading. Take the steps. Reach out if you need someone to walk with you. Walking out of our sin and shame can be complicated and messy, and sometimes we need another to walk with us.

This month, I encourage you to practice all three rhythms of prayer: Awe, Repent, Receive.

At the beginning or end of your day, take a few minutes to journal. It could be a sentence or two, or a word or phrase.

Awe | Repent | Receive

What leaves me in Awe?

Where am I being invited to Repent and turn around?

What do I need to Receive?

Happy Thanksgiving Month! May you look for Him and His gentle whispers. Grateful to pause with you!